KirkwoodGolf: 25 Dec 2013

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

ENGLISH STUDENT EASON WINS BIG EVENT AT MIAMI BEACH

FROM THE GOLFWEEK WEBSITE

Central Florida University's  English-born stand-out Greg Eason fired a final-round, 2-under 69 to capture the South Beach International Amateur title on Sunday, outpacing Bailey Patrick by two strokes at Miami Beach Golf Club.
Eason, pictured by GolfWeek staff photographer Tracy Wilcox, has enjoyed a solid ending to his 2013, picking up a pair of second-place individual finishes for the Knights (Adams Cup, Northern Intercollegiate) in the fall after he was T-8 at the NCAA Championships in June. 
He was a PING First-Team All-American after his junior season, while also winning an NCAA Regional -- the first UCF player to do that in its history.
Eason, from Leicester, is in his final year at Central Florida University.
North Carolina's Patrick saved his best for last with a 3-under 68 on Sunday, leaving him in solo second at 3 under for the tournament.
Virginia Tech's Bryce Chalkey and New Mexico's Victor Perez finished T-3, while Rich Lamb, Eli Cole, Grayson Murray and 17-year-old Kristian Caparros were in a group at T-5 at 1 over for the tournament.
The tournament hosted 204 players from 24 countries.

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GUESS WHO MARIA SVENSON IS IN STARBUCKS' CLIENTELE?

FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
The woman behind the counter at Starbucks in the Denver suburbs was making small talk with a customer when she learned he was headed to the Solheim Cup.

"Annika Sorenstam was just in here," she said. "Well, I think that was her."
Think?
Not only is the Swede the most famous LPGA Tour player of her generation, one would suspect writing the word "Annika" on the cup would be a dead giveaway. Except that in this case, she can be excused. Turns out Sorenstam doesn't go by "Annika" when she's in Starbucks.
Her code name is Maria.
"Maria is the one name that translates on every continent," Sorenstam said when she confessed to her alias. "So I'm Maria Swenson."

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LEADBETTER SAYS NO MAJOR CHANGES PLANNED IN LYDIA KO SWING


FROM THE GOLFTALK CENTRAL WEBSITE
By RANDALL MELL
David Leadbetter, pictured below during clinic in China, says he won’t be looking to overhaul Lydia Ko’s swing in any way as her new coach, but he and Sean Hogan won’t be afraid to make some changes when needed.

In fact, they did last month when Ko, 16, came to visit Leadbetter and Hogan, a Leadbetter staff instructor, for three days at Champions Gate in Orlando, Florida
“We listened to her, and one area of concern she had was that under pressure, sometimes she would hit an odd hook, where she had the club face shut,” Leadbetter said.
Leadbetter said they worked on changes to address her concerns before she left for the Swinging Skirts World Ladies Masters in Taiwan. She won the event, the fifth professional title of her career, her third this year.
“She seemed like she was very happy with the changes,” Leadbetter said.
Leadbetter said he believes Ko has no weaknesses.
“This isn’t about re-inventing her swing,” Leadbetter said. “It’s about guiding, keeping her on track.”
Ko’s move to Leadbetter created an emotional reaction back in New Zealand, where Ko dropped Guy Wilson, the only coach she had ever known. Leadbetter said his staff has been in contact via the Internet with Wilson.
“We were very open with him, and he with us,” Leadbetter said.
Leadbetter said he understands the sensitivities that come with Ko’s coaching switch. He expects hard scrutiny given the caliber of player he’s getting.
“If she plays well, it will be because she’s a great player,” Leadbetter said. “If she doesn’t, we will be the bad guys.”

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A Merry Christmas to all our readers and contributors

Gillian and Colin




PS Did you see Gillian on the Antiques Roadshow from Edinburgh?

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